This paper shall seek to examine the heraldic display in the Palace of Facets (1491), the principal Reception Hall of the rulers of Muscovy, at the time of its construction, under Ivan III the Great (1440-1505), in the context of the new geo-political situation which followed the fall of Constantinople, and the formation of the doctrine of the historic role of Russia as the Third Rome and heir to...

In medieval town halls, coats of arms were a prominent visual means of expressing urban (civic) identity. A core element of this identity was the commemoration of an urban history that was not at all limited to the texts of city chronicles. To the contrary, in this presentation I will explore the commemorative function of heraldic signs as part of urban material and visual culture in German and English...

From the 14th century onwards, the decoration of medieval halls culminated in painted coats of arms commemorating the status of their owner. Interestingly, heraldic friezes also integrated imaginary arms. They were displayed side by side with real existing ones, as for example in the Haus zum Loch in Zurich. Similarly, at the Schönes Haus in Basel, the eyes of the distinguished guests were caught by playful variations of heraldic...

Heraldry was an ubiquitous element of state-rooms. Whether in palaces of kings and princes, castles of noblemen, residences of patricians, city halls or in cathedral chapters, heraldic display was a crucial element in the visual programme of these spaces. Despite its omnipresence, however, heraldic display in state-rooms remains largely understudied so far. Given the fundamental role of heraldry in medieval and early modern visual communication, it seems essential to...

(version française ci-dessous) Heraldry was an ubiquitous element of state-rooms. Whether in palaces of kings and princes, castles of noblemen, residences of patricians, city halls or in cathedral chapters, heraldic display was a crucial element in the visual programme of these spaces. Despite its omnipresence, however, heraldic display in state-rooms remains largely understudied so far. Given the fundamental role of heraldry in medieval and early modern visual communication, it...

The collaborative blog Heraldica Nova is an initiative of the Dilthey-Project ‘Die Performanz der Wappen’ (University of Münster) which aims to study medieval and early modern heraldry from the perspective of cultural history. Read more ...